Disney vacation planning feels like art until you realize it’s closer to operations research. We sit down with Len Testa, president of Touring Plans, co-author of The Unofficial Guide series, and a familiar voice from the Disney Dish podcast, to unpack how crowd calendars and wait time predictions actually get made and why they work as often as they do.

We talk about the moment Len fell in love with Walt Disney World as a kid, then follow the thread into computer science, scheduling problems, and the surprising amount of data required to forecast a day in the parks. Len breaks down what a touring plan really is: a step-by-step itinerary designed to minimize time in line, powered by historical wait times and updated with real-time conditions. He also shares where the data comes from, how it gets checked against reality, and what it means to be a responsible consumer of Disney and Universal app data.

From there, we zoom out to Disney’s bigger tech and analytics story. Len explains why Disney’s analytics capabilities outpace the rest of the theme park industry, how guest surveys and promotion testing reveal internal decision-making, and why legacy systems and user experience friction still show up in My Disney Experience. We also get into what can force models to change overnight, including pandemic-era anomalies and major operational shifts like DAS eligibility changes.

We wrap with a fun rapid-fire favorites round and a peek at what Len hopes Disney reveals at D23, from villains land details to timelines and phase-one expansion progress. If you care about Disney World strategy, Lightning Lane realities, Disneyland planning, or just want a smarter way to think about crowds, hit play and come nerd out with us. Subscribe, share the episode with a Disney friend, and leave a quick rating and review so more fans can find the show.

You can find Len’s work over at TouringPlans.com and @touringplans on Instagram, and follow along on some of his adventures via Instagram @len.testa.

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Adventures & Mousecapades is a passion project from Alicea & Nathan Novak - two Seattleites addicted to The Mouse. We are not affiliated with Disney, nor are we travel agents. Opinions are our own.

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